Speakers and workshops
1. Ann Cools
Ann Cools is a physiotherapist, working as an associate professor at the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences and Physiotherapy at the Ghent University, Belgium. Her topic of research and teaching expertise, is shoulder rehabilitation in general, and sport specific approach and scapular involvement in particular. Besides her academic work, she runs a shoulder clinic in a private practice.
She finished her PhD in 2003, debating scapular involvement in sports related shoulder pain in the overhead athlete, and she has published numerous papers in peer-reviewed international journals, wrote contributions and chapters in several international recognized books, and gives courses on a national and international level. She was head of the Physical Therapy Education at the Ghent University 2008-2016, and was founding member and president of the European Society of Shoulder and Elbow Rehabilitation (EUSSER) 2008-2012. Since 2016, she is also affiliated as senior researcher to the Department of Physiotherapy of the Bispebjerg Hospital and the Department of Sports Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
She is currently a member of the Board of the International Congress of Shoulder and Elbow Therapists, organizing the 3-annual world congress for shoulder and elbow therapists, and is founding board member of the Flemish Shoulder Network.
Presentation title (#1): The Bern Consensus - What it is and what it means to practice
Presentation title (#2): The overhead athlete: from pain to the playing field
2. Caroline White
Caroline White is currently an assistant professor at the University of Birmingham where she is the programme lead for the Exercise and Sports Medicine Masters Programme and completing her professional doctorate in “Shoulder Injuries in the elite female collision based athlete.” She is a consultant physio with England Rugby Union working across their men’s and women’s teams having previously held a full time role within the RFU. Caroline has worked for the England Football Association for four years full time and has held consultancy roles with the UK sports institute, England Cricket and several other sports.
Presentation title: "Is the Shoulder an issue in Women's Rugby?"
3. Mike Stewart
Mike is a physiotherapist, researcher and international lecturer with over twenty-five years experience of clinical practice. Mike is a dedicated practice-based educator who is passionate about providing evidence-based education to a wide variety of health professionals. He teaches across elite sports, and is an advisor on pain management to the International Olympic Committee. Mike has a Masters degree in Education and his published work relating to the development of communication skills in healthcare has received international praise.
Presentation title: "I am not an injury. I am a cyclist." A practical communication workshop to help the athlete in pain.
4. Kevin Kuppens
Kevin is a physiotherapist with special interest in sports physiotherapy & shoulder problems. As an academic researcher he works at Antwerp University (UA-Belgium). In July 2020 he got his PhD studying chronic shoulder pain more specifically in a population of performers. Title of his work: “Chronic Performance Related Shoulder Pain: New Insights Beyond Tendons And Joints”. He (co-)authored several books, chapters & papers in internationally peer-reviewed journals. Kevin teaches amongst others at the physiotherapy department in Antwerp (UA). He is clinically active in his clinic Kinecoach based in Herentals (Belgium) and for the Flemish & Belgian national swimming team. Apart from chairing the Flemish Shoulder Network, Kevin is a member of Pain In Motion
(international research group).
Presentation title: Swimmers, Shoulders and Pain: Stories and Evidence beyond Rotator Cuffs and Prevalence.
5. Adam Gledhill
Adam is a Course Director: Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences at Leeds Beckett University where he is also a member of the Orthopaedic Sports Medicine Research Group within the Centre for Human Performance. He is a British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES) Accredited Sport and Exercise Scientist with over 20 years’ experience of providing sport science support to athletes and teams, including consulting specifically with athletes around psychological considerations in sports injury. In 2020, Adam was the recipient of the BASES Applied Practitioner Award and in 2019 was recognised with Fellowship of BASES for his sustained and
distinguished contributions to sport and exercise science.
Alongside his teaching and applied experience, Adam holds several editorial board positions and has a passion for research and knowledge exchange. He is the Editor for The Sport and Exercise Scientist, sits on the Editorial Board for Case Studies in Sport and Exercise Psychology, and is an Associate Editor for the British Journal of
Sports Medicine. He has over 170 research and knowledge exchange outputs, including peer-reviewed journals, book chapters, project reports, expert commentaries, and various invited conference presentations.
Throughout all his work, Adam adopts a person-first approach and demonstrates a passion for helping people thrive in different environments.
Presentation title: The psychology of shoulder injuries: What can clinicians do to support (and challenge) athletes during rehabilitation and return to sport?
6. Edel Fanning
Edel is a chartered physiotherapist and leads the upper limb rehabilitation service at the Sports Surgery Clinic, Dublin. Prior to working in Dublin, she worked as a Clinical Specialist Physiotherapist in the UK National Health Service. She has a keen interest in shoulder biomechanics, the sporting shoulder and injury prevention and has worked with elite athletes from a wide range of sporting disciplines. She completed her PhD at the University College Cork investigating the use of return to play criteria post glenohumeral joint stabilisation. Her work
explores the role of 3D biomechanics and the use of novel upper limb functional tests in assisting return to play decision making post shoulder reconstruction in contact athletes.
Presentation title: Return to play in rugby: Are we doing well enough?
7. Fredrik Johansson
Fredrik Johansson, tennis coach, Naprapath, S&C and associate professor at Sophiahemmet University. Involved in high-performance youth sports for 30+ years and mainly tennis. Sub-specialized in the shoulder of the tennis player. Working at Good to Great Tennis Academy as director of athletic performance, President for the Society of Tennis Medicine and Science (STMS), lecturer at Mid-University master’s program for high-performance sports in Sweden.
Presentation title: Don't throw in the towel because you can't throw
8. Jo Gibson
Jo completed her Masters in Advanced Practice at Liverpool University in 2012 and completed her dissertation on the Biopsychosocial model cementing her belief in tailoring treatment to the individual and the importance of communication skills. Jo is a Clinical Physiotherapy Specialist at the Liverpool Upper Limb Unit based at the Royal Liverpool Hospital, UK. She continues to be involved in upper limb research, has presented original research at many National and International conferences winning three Best Paper prizes. She has published in peer-reviewed journals and written several book chapters. Jo has also co-authored BESS Care Pathways for the British Elbow and Shoulder Society.
Jo lectures both nationally and internationally about rehabilitation of the shoulder. Her research interests are shoulder instability and motor learning. Jo is currently Squad Physiotherapist for the Great Britain Endurance riding Team. Jo’s recognised expertise in the assessment and management of shoulder pathology has resulted in consultancy work with many elite sports teams in a variety of sports including football, rugby, cricket, gymnastics, swimming, boxing and tennis. In addition she is regularly sought out by other clinicians to help problem solve more challenging presentations.
Presentation title: TBC
9. Ian Horsley
Ian has been a physiotherapist for nearly 30 years. He worked as a physiotherapist for England Rugby Union, for 14 years, in with various teams, and spent the last 6 years working with the Elite Playing squad, as physiotherapist to England ‘A’.
Currently Ian is Lead Physiotherapist and Technical Lead for the North West for the English Institute of Sport, Clinical Director of Back In Action Rehabilitation, in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, associate lecturer at Salford University, and member of the EdCom for EUSSER and BESS.
He concluded his PhD in 2103 examining the issues around shoulder injuries in professional rugby, and has published several articles in peer reviewed journals on the subject of musculoskeletal injury management, and contributed chapters to several books on sports injury management. He worked as part of the HQ medical team for Team England at the 2010 and 2014 Commonwealth Games, was a member of the Team GB HQ medical team at the 2012 and 2016 Olympic Games and currently is a Consultant Physiotherapist to England Football.
Presentation title: “You’ve Got a Dysfunctional Shoulder…It’s All in Your Head!”
10. Roger Kerry
Roger Kerry is Professor of Physiotherapy Education at the University of Nottingham, UK. He is a qualified Chartered Physiotherapist, and an honorary Fellow of the UK’s Musculoskeletal Association of Chartered Physiotherapists. His main clinical research interests include differentiation of vascular causes of pain. Roger also undertakes research activity in the Philosophy of Science, investigating the nature of causation in the health sciences, and this was the focus of his PhD. He is well- published in many areas of physiotherapy practice and has been an invited speaker at numerous international conferences. Roger has been commended for developing innovative educational curricula and has received two prestigious Lord Dearing Awards for teaching excellence. He has also been recognised as a Higher Education Social Media Superstar by UK digital education organisation JISC.
Presentation title: Neurovascular presentations in the Sporting Shoulder
10. Ritchie Barber
A retired Paralympic swimmer who achieved a silver medal at the Sydney 2000 Paralympic Games along with multiple World and European titles. Developed a keen interest in Physiotherapy whilst receiving rehabilitation for his underlying Cerebral Palsy and numerous swimming related injuries. Has worked in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy within the NHS and private practice since 2006 and for British Para Swimming over the last eight years. Contributing to 73 Paralympic medals across two Paralympic cycles. A very proud member of ParalympicsGB and Commonwealth Games Team England and a recipient of the Mussabini Medal. Currently lecturers at The University of Salford in on the Physiotherapy Degree programme.
Presentation title: The Para Shoulder - Pain AND Performance!
11. Julie Stark
Julie has been involved with the delivery of physiotherapy to elite athletes within high performance programmes for over 30 years. During that time, she worked with British Canoeing as Lead Physiotherapist and subsequently Lead Physiotherapist with the Canadian National Slalom team based in British Columbia.
Within these roles her special interest was in the implementation of sports specific screening protocols used in the identification of key performance indicators to enhance athlete training, and risk factors associated with injury prevention.
Through her with elite canoeing athletes and professional cricketers, Julie gained expertise in shoulder injuries and their management. This has helped to facilitate fast-track return to play strategies to enable several key athletes to compete and deliver medal winning performances on their return to sport.
Following the London 2012 Olympic Games, a change of focus and move to a role where she was able to share her knowledge and experience more regularly with other practitioners. Julie took up a full time Athlete Health Lead role within the EIS (UKSI) in 2013 supporting the development practitioners within several Olympic sports programs including GB Canoeing, GB Rowing, GB Hockey, GB Fencing, GB Badminton and Nationally as part of the Upper Limb Learning Team.
Since February 2024, Julie has taken up a new fulltime role with Mercedes Petronas AMG F1 supporting the Team with their Health and Wellbeing programmes.
Presentation title: Canoeing Shoulder
12. Nigel Jones
Dr Nigel Jones (MB ChB MSc DipSEM DipOccMed FFSEM) is a Consultant in Sport and Exercise Medicine. He works at Spire Liverpool Hospital and Rehab 4 Performance. He has worked in elite sport for 30 years and is the current Chief Medical Officer for British Cycling. Prior to his current role he was Doctor to the England Men’s Senior Rugby Team. He has also worked at Liverpool Football Club, the English Institute of Sport, and for the British Boxing Board of Control. Nigel is a former Chair of Education for the Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine (FSEM) and a former Chair of the British Association of Sport and Exercise Medicine (BASEM). He is an Honorary Senior Lecturer at Liverpool University. Nigel has been a member of Faculty for the RFU Pre Hospital Immediate Care in Sport Course since 2005.
Presentation title: Concussion, Stingers and Shoulder Instability - Linking them all together
13. Tim Stevenson
Presentation title: Holding a mirror up to ‘success’: A patient’s perspective
14. Val Jones
Val Jones is a Clinical Physiotherapy Specialist working at the Sheffield Shoulder and Elbow Unit at the Sheffield Teaching Hospital Foundation Trust and also works in private practice. She lectures nationally and internationally about the assessment and rehabilitation of the elbow joint. Val has published in peer reviewed journals, and written book chapters on elbow rehabilitation, and is a previous AHP representative on the British Elbow and Shoulder Society Council, as well as being the current EUSSER President (European Society of Shoulder & Elbow Rehabilitation) . She has organised and presented upon highly successful elbow courses, including the BESS elbow update symposium held in Sheffield in 2022. She was awarded the inaugural Copeland Fellowship from the British Elbow and Shoulder Society in 2016, travelling to Cape Town, to exchange ideas with surgical and therapy colleagues.
Presentation title: Anyone for tennis? Elbow pain in athletes, what are the considerations?
15. Simon Booker
Simon was appointed as a Consultant in Sheffield in 2017 with a shoulder and elbow subspecialty interest. He offers a full shoulder and elbow service including arthroscopic and open soft tissue reconstructions as well as joint replacement surgery. He also enjoys the challenge of caring for patients with complex shoulder and elbow injuries as part of my role at Sheffield Major Trauma Centre. Simon was appointed Clinical Lead for Shoulder and Elbow surgery in 2020.
Simon graduated from Nottingham Medical school in 2005 and completed my Orthopaedic training on the regarded East Midlands rotation. He undertook specialist Shoulder and Elbow Fellowships in Exeter and Derby. He has extensive surgical experience and explore new treatments and techniques that might help my patients recover sooner. Simon enjoys the challenge of trying to help patients in Sheffield that have been referred from other hospitals in the region.
Simon is actively involved in research with numerous publications in peer reviewed journals, have co-authored book chapters, and enjoy presenting my work both nationally and internationally. he has a keen interest in training the next generation of surgeons, supervising both senior trainees on the Sheffield Shoulder and Elbow Fellowship, and more junior surgeons starting out in their career. Simon is a faculty member on courses around the country to teach and assess orthopaedic knowledge and clinical examination skills
Presentation title: The Sporting Elbow: A Surgeon’s Perspective
16. Mike Walton
After completing specialist training in Bristol and a fellowship in Perth, Western Australia, Mike was appointed as a consultant at Wrightington Centre of Excellence in 2011.
He has developed a highly specialist shoulder practice practice as part of the Upper Limb Unit and worked as clinical director between 2019-2021. He has particular interesting advanced arthroscopy and complex and revision shoulder arthroplasty. He receives tertiary referrals form around the region and routinely treats professional athletes. He works closely with the rehabilitation team and has helped expand the team to 5 specialist shoulder physiotherapists.
He has an active interest in research and education and is principal investigator of the team recently awarded the NIHR funding grant for the RAPSODI trial. Mike is married to Julia, a specialist shoulder therapist with whom he tries, often in vain, to parent 2 sons
Presentation title: An introduction to shoulder instability: Forwards, Backs and All Rounders
17. Uzo Ehiogu
Uzo is a Consultant in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy and Strength and Conditioning and a Clinical Educator. He is a musculoskeletal physiotherapist and advises clinicians and organizations on performance optimisation for occupational fitness and musculoskeletal rehabilitation. His current clinical practice straddles the divide between athletic performance and musculoskeletal rehabilitation in minority sports such as climbing, tumbling and gymnastics providing applied support to athletes.
In addition, he is also involved in humanitarian work supporting the development of physiotherapy services in conflict zones including Ukraine and Palestine. He is a former Royal Marines Commando, Special Operations Solider and British Army Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation Officer. He has led services in Afghanistan for the British Army.
Uzo has both Masters of Science Degrees in Neuromusculoskeletal Physiotherapy and Strength and Conditioning and Bachelor Degrees in Applied Sports Science and Physiotherapy. He is a full member of the UK Musculoskeletal Association of Chartered Physiotherapists (MACP)? and is a Professional Doctorate Candidate in Strength and Conditioning and Rehabilitation.
Uzo is also an UKSCA Accredited strength and Conditioning Coach (ASCC) and a Visiting Fellow at Leeds Beckett University Centre for Human Performance and Honorary Clinical Lecturer at Birmingham University Medical School.
Presentation title: Climbing Injuries and Return to Performance - What a Non climbing specialist needs to know !
18. Omer Elma
Dr. Omer Elma is a lecturer in physiotherapy at Bournemouth University and a member of the Pain in Motion international research group. He received his BSc in physiotherapy from AIBU, Turkey, MSc in advancing neuromusculoskeletal practice from the University of Nottingham, England, and PhD on the link between chronic MSK pain and nutrition from Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium. His research interests lie in uncovering the intricate links between chronic (MSK) pain and lifestyle factors, metabolism, and neuroimmunology. Furthermore, he is deeply interested and developing a research line in personalized lifestyle interventions within the chronic pain domain, leveraging the power of AI techniques.
Presentation title: The Link Between Chronic (Shoulder Pain), Neuroimmune Metabolism, and Nutrition
19. Liam Owens
Presentation title: Incorporating the kinetic chain into shoulder rehabilitation: does it really matter?